


Ambition

by monochrome_dragons



Series: Ambition [1]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Harry Potter Setting, Bisexual Harry Potter, F/M, Gay Draco Malfoy, Gen, James Potter Being an Asshole, James Potter Lives, Lily Evans Potter Lives, M/M, Slytherin Harry Potter, Trans Ginny Weasley
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-08
Updated: 2020-02-19
Packaged: 2020-02-28 12:45:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 12,539
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18756691
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/monochrome_dragons/pseuds/monochrome_dragons
Summary: /amˈbɪʃ(ə)n/noun• desire and determination to achieve successHarry James Potter is not an ordinary boy. He is a wizard!His life has never been the most ordinary of ordeals either, starting with an attack when he was just one. Since then there has been growing and learning and magic. And now his world is only going to get bigger. Because Hogwarts is only a train ride away.---AUSlytherin!HarryLily and James are aliveEventual drarry, but they're eleven, and innocent for nowMay be other ships later on too





	1. 31st October 1981

"Why do you need to know?" Sirius Black asked, rather suspiciously.

"W-well I-" Peter Pettigrew began, but could not finish, and could not look his friend in the eye.

Sirius' shoulders slumped, and he sighed as he realised.

"It's you isn't it?"

"I- I-" Peter stammered.

"It's you! You're the bloody traitor! You actually thought I would ever give up Lily and James? You thought I'd be so stupid?"

Peter just stood there, stuttering and shaking, his lip quivering as though he had no idea where Sirius' anger was coming from, or why it was justified. And then a thought struck Sirius. A horrible thought that hurt deep within his chest, even more than his betrayal.

"You- you rat! You let us all believe it was Remus. You let us completely alienate him. Let us blame him because it was easy, and you stood by and did nothing!"

"I-I'm sorry. I don't know what I was thinking-"

"Bullshit!" Sirius spat.

He grabbed the smaller man by the collar of his shirt and dragged him to where the rest of the Order were gathered. There was a clear divide as nobody wanted to associate with who they thought to be the traitor, and nobody was talking. They weren't here to talk. They were here because Sirius was he Potters' secret keeper, and they needed to keep eyes on him should the traitor try to get information from him. Who knew slimy, traitorous gits could be so predictable? So when Sirius pushed Peter into the room, everybody looked up.

"It's him."

And then: chaos. The more accustomed wizards set to work containing Peter, but Sirius went straight to Remus.

"Moony. Moony, I'm so sorry. I should've known. I should've-"

Remus cut him off with a hand on his shoulder.

"You couldn't have known Sirius. But James and Lily need to know."

%%%

"Fuck!" Remus spat as he hit the ground.

As it turned out, waiting to tell James and Lily would probably have been in their best interest. As soon as they heard, the young couple wanted to be taken back to the rest of the Order. This was the worst idea. The five of them were swarmed by death eaters within minutes of taking to the skies. Curses were slung back and forth over and over. Until it stopped, and they fell.

"Lily!" James called out, "I think Lily was hit!"

"I wasn't!" came the redhead's near hysterical reply in the dark, "He was going for Harry. I tried to get between them. It hit him; it hit Harry!"

"He's alive Lily." Sirius, who had been the one to take Harry, called, "He's alive. But he's... he's hurt."

It took a few scrambled moments for them to find each other, though Sirius was the easiest to find, with Harry's sudden cries echoing as he supposedly regained consciousness. As said by his Godfather, Harry was very much alive, but not unscathed. A bloody wound ran across half his face spreading downwards from his forehead. The connecting lines were thin, painting a shocking, heart-shattering lightning strike across his face, but there was a lot of blood.

"How did he-" Lily began, taking her small son into her arms, trying to soothe him.

"It's over." Remus breathed, "Voldemort. He fell too. The death eaters ran off. He- he-"

Disbelieving silence fell over them, but before long, people had come to collect them, and the truth settled in their tired bones and aching heads.

Sirius sighed softly, "It's over."


	2. The Expected

The entirety of the extended Potter family had known that Harry James Potter was absolutely a wizard practically his whole life. But that didn't mean it wasn't cause for celebration when Harry got his letter. In fact, quite the opposite. The celebration was done classic Marauders style, much to Lily's distress. But even she, by the end of the night, was completely and utterly involved in what Sirius and James had taken to calling 'festivities'. To be frank, Harry genuinely thought that maybe James and Sirius were more excited about him going to Hogwarts than he was, and that was certainly saying something considering he'd literally been counting the days since his ninth birthday, crossing off each day on he calender as it passed. But then... James was James, and Sirius was Sirius.  
But whatever the reasoning for it, the morning after, when Harry insisted they had to get to Diagon Alley, it was only Lily and Remus who were fit to take him. Try as the other two might, they couldn't escape Lily's order to sleep their hangovers off, so maybe they could see without blinding headaches later. Not that Harry had any issues, just so long as there was somebody available to take him because his tiny body surely would burst if he got any more excited, and he still had September to stew on the fact that he was actually going to Hogwarts.  
Lily and Remus helped him going into each store he required, except for Madam Malkin's. Harry insisted he would be okay on his own, while Lily went to chaperone Remus in investigating whatever he had spotted. He'd never been into Madam Malkin's before, but the woman was nice enough, going on to take his measurements, guessing correctly the school he needed uniform for. He wasn't alone in the shop however. There was another boy, pale-faced, with pointed features and stark blonde hair. Harry had his suspicions of who this boy might be, but not wanting to be wrong, or deny the boy his chance to differentiate himself from the things Harry knew about his maybe-family, Harry let him go on with the oncoming greeting that he could see written all over his face.  
"Hello," he greeted, "Hogwarts too?"  
"Yes."  
"My father's next door buying my books, and mother's up the street looking at wands," the boy drawled almost boredly, "Then I'm going to drag them off to look at racing brooms. I don't see why first years can't have their own. I think I'll bully father into getting me one and I'll smuggle it in somehow."  
Definitely a Malfoy, Harry thought, his suspicion proven. He wanted to make a point that he had no chance smuggling anything into Hogwarts, let alone a racing broom. He didn't have his own yet. James had promised he would get him one when he made the Quidditch team ("there's no 'if' about it Lils!"), but until then, he would just have to use James' when he wanted to practise.  
"Have you got your own broom?" the boy went on, as though reading Harry's mind.  
"No."  
"Play Quidditch at all?"  
"A little."  
"I do - Father says it's a crime if I'm not picked to play for my house, and I must say, I agree. Know what house you'll be in yet?"  
The boy really seemed like a brat in Harry's opinion. It wasn't anything he would say out loud of course, but he couldn't help but think that this kid had obviously been brought up what his dad called 'typical pureblood fashion'. Harry had tried to point out that James was pureblood too, but he quickly stated that he meant the likes of the Sacred Twenty-Eight. Harry had silenced his arguments for that one.  
Regardless. No matter his or even James' opinions, and no matter that this Malfoy seemed like a brat, Harry couldn't help but feel like he was someone he might be fond of. Like they might've actually made good friends. He decided to hold the boy's conversation.  
"Well, both my parents were in Gryffindor, so I think that's a safe bet. But nobody really knows until they get there, do they?"  
"I suppose not. I know I'll be in Slytherin though, all our family have been. I don't fancy being in Hufflepuff much though, do you?"  
Harry just stared blankly, refusing silently to agree.  
"What's your surname anyway?"  
Harry figured he quite easily could have just lifted his fringe to show the boy his scar, a crack of violent lightning across his face. He kept his untidy hair longer at the front to hide it most of the time, because he found people treated him differently when they knew who he was. But he figured, just this once...  
Before he could however, Madam Malkin informed him that he was done, and he hopped off the stool.  
"I suppose I'll see you at school then."  
Harry paused before leaving, chewing on his lip. Something inside him, burning, really wanted to make himself known to this boy, but he couldn't fathom why when most of the time he straight up refused to let anyone know unless it was absolutely required. But ultimately, he decided to give the answer the boy had wanted.  
"Potter." He said, "My surname is Potter."  
\---  
It turned out the Remus had found his way into a sweet shop, ogling over the selection of chocolate that they had, and ultimately returning with bags full of buys. Being Remus though, and probably the sweetest person ever to exist, there were actually only a few bars specifically for him, while the rest were hangover cures for James and Sirius, and treats for Lily and Harry. Harry rather happily licked at a lollipop as they wandered through the Alley.  
"Someone's chirpy," Remus noted, through a mouthful of chocolate, "What happened."  
"I met a Malfoy in Madam Malkin's." he replied cheerily, laughing as Remus almost choked.  
"You what now?"  
"He was a bit of a brat-"  
"Harry!" Lily scolded.  
"He was! But I didn't tell him that. He was trying to be nice though I think. I spoke to him nicely, I promise, and I uh... I told him my name... Then left before I could see his reaction."  
Remus guffawed, choking again, and Harry couldn't help but join in.  
"I'd say I can't believe anyone actually let Malfoy breed but he and Narcissa Black actually made a good couple. For an arranged thing I suppose."  
"Well-" Lily sighed softly, "At least you were nice Harry. Better than your father was at your age," she glanced sideways at Remus, "And the others for that matter."  
"Lily Potter!" Remus cried indignantly, "I'll have you know I was a delight."  
"Yet you let me marry James." she chuckled.  
Harry gave aa sly smirk up at her, "I'm telling dad you said that."  
\---  
The last required thing the three got round to was of course Harry's wand. It was, of course, a given that they were going to take him to Ollivander's. He was renowned, and they trusted it would allow Harry a wand that understood him and would allow him to do the great things they had always believed he could achieve. They smiled warmly as each of their wand's were reeled off to them, and the small look of awe on Harry's face brought laughter from the both of them. And this began the spiral into destruction. Lily's face reddened with each denied wand, and really hoped Ollivander would not mind his beloved shop being temporarily torn to shreds as Harry struggled to bond with a wand. However, she needn't have worried, because with each wand that denied the young wizard, the wandmaker appeared to get more and more excited, until finally he place his hands on the counter, and proceeded to fall deep into thought.  
"Sorry." Harry had muttered at this point.  
"My dear boy," Ollivander shook his head, "Please don't apologise, this is the most fun I've had all week! I wonder if-" before he could finish his thought, he bustled off down the narrow path between towers of wand boxes.  
Harry turned to Lily and Remus while the wandmaker was absent, and they replied to his anxious look with reassuring smiles, and he gave a nervous one back turned back just at the shop owner came back, clutching a wand box and suddenly looking quite solemn, giving the adults that accompanied him a half worried look. He said nothing to explain however, instead gently passing the wand to him over the counter. The moment Harry took it he knew it was his, even before the sparks flew and the applause came from his mother and Remus. Ollivander however remained solemn, ignoring when Lily placed the seven galleons on the counter, along with another three out of guilt for the destruction in the shop.  
"Is something wrong?" Harry asked quietly.  
"Your scar..." Ollivander began, and Lily instinctively placed her hand on her son's shoulder, "I assume you know how you got it?"  
Harry nodded, looking over his shoulder to Lily.  
"Forgive me," the wandmaker said, aiming the apology to the woman, "But his wand... the core is Phoenix tail feather. The Phoenix that gave it, gave a total of two."  
Lily tightened her grip on Harry's shoulder and he figured she must have caught on to what the wandmaker was saying.  
"It's a contentious thing, I'm aware, but the wand chooses the wizard. I hope you know I have no say in that."  
"Of course," Lily nodded, "Of course, I understand."  
"Thank you, Mr. Ollivander." Harry called, as the three of them left the store.  
As soon as they left, Harry wanted to bombard his mother with questions but figured she wouldn't talk. Instead he changed the subject.  
"Anything else."  
Remus squeezed Lily's shoulder when he thought Harry wasn't looking, and replied for her, "I think a trip to get you an owl is needed."  
\---  
Later that night, when Harry was supposed to be in bed, Lily, Remus, James, and Sirius were sat in the living room, solemnly and almost annoyed talking. Harry really thought that they should have guessed he would sneak down and listen by the door, but they seemed too caught up in what was on their mind's to even think he was doing anything other than sleeping.  
"So his wand shares a core with-"  
"With his wand. Yes."  
"And that means-"  
"Their wands are twins."  
"But he's gone so-"  
"Nobody knows if that's actually forever, James. Besides, that's not really the point."  
"What is the point?"  
"Their wands are twins. That must mean that in some ways the two of them are similar."  
"Prongslet is not evil, Lils."  
"I know that Sirius. I just mean... he did terrible things. Absolutely horrific, obviously. But... but he was powerful."  
"Harry already defeated him, when he was a baby, we already knew he was going to be powerful."  
"That was accidental. Now he has his wand."  
"He'll be fine, Lily. Just you wait and see. He's sweet, compassionate, and hasn't an evil bone in his body."  
"I know... I just..."  
"It's a reminder, guys, that's what makes this worrying," Remus spoke for the first time, "It's a reminded that You-Know-Who existed, and is the reason we've tried to keep Harry not so out in the open."  
"Exactly."  
"Twin wands or not, nobody else has to know that. Just us, and Ollivander."  
Harry shook as he snuck back up to his bedroom, tucking himself up in the covers and laying there in the darkness, processing what he'd heard, and understanding it perfectly.  
Nobody had to know, Harry agreed in his head, just mum, dad, Pads, Moony, Ollivander...  
He rolled over, listening to the soft twittering of his new owl, Hedwig.  
And me.


	3. The Unexpected

   The journey to King's Cross station was crowded to say the least. The Potters (plus the uncles for all intents and purposes) joined the Weasleys for the journey considering what good friends the families were. Harry was very familiar with the Weasley children. He got on best with the twins, and he'd always had a sneaky suspicion that Lily and Molly had sort of wanted Harry and Ginny to hit it off, but he'd always known he and Ron would be in the same year, so the two of them were also very close, and it was him that Harry walked beside, talking to.

   "Fred and George won't tell me what the test is, to sort us into houses. They said it's like really painful or something but I don't think I believe them."

   Harry wanted to point out that he didn't think a school would be allowed to do something like that but then realised the school sport was one of the most dangerous out there, and also that he didn't know how they were sorted either, so didn't want to reassure Ron to then be accused of doing so falsely. But as it turned out, it didn't really matter so much, because the concern of a potentially painful sorting was quickly replaced with concern about running into a very sold looking brick wall.

   While Molly bustled about, reassuring the younger boys that it would be find, they could just watch the older Weasleys first, and to run if they were nervous, Lily and James just gave Harry warm smiles and James gave a soft 'go for it son'. And it turned out getting onto the platform was a lot easier than it sounded, and getting onto the actual train was the more difficult part. After getting all their luggage onto the train, Harry left the Weasleys temporarily to say goodbye to his family.

   "Write to us, Harry," Lily mumbled into his hair.

   "Everyday."

   "Everyday?" Sirius cried, "It's a miracle! I might cry..."

   "Don't go out of your way, Prongslet," Remus smiled warmly, "Once a week will be fine, you know that."

   And Harry did because this had been an ongoing conversation since it sunk in that going to Hogwarts meant being away from his family for pretty much the first time ever.

   "I know-" the whistle went, "I'll speak soon!"

   He hurried to hug them all again, and rush onto the train.

   "Make Gryffindor proud!" James called, before the train let out its last whistle and began to pull away.

   Harry regrouped with Ron and the twins by the  beginning of the compartments and stumbled down the narrow corridor as the train shuttled along. The twins ducked into a compartment a little way down as they spotted people they knew from their own year, leaving Harry and Ron alone when they found their own empty compartment. Harry let Ron go on for a couple of minutes about how much hassle that had been, and quietly agreed with him, before pulling out a battered pack of exploding snap cards that Sirius had slipped into his bag earlier that morning, and asking Ron if he wanted a game. It perhaps wasn't the easiest game to play in a train compartment, but it provided some fun for an hour or two. By which time, the general excitement of the train ride outside the carriages had died down enough that the Sweet Trolley was making it way down the train. Harry couldn't help but grin when he heard the rickety wheels of said trolley, because both James and Sirius had slipped him some money for some goodies, and Harry had been relieved to see that he had enough to also get some sweets for Ron, and even the twins, but it had of course turned out they had sat elsewhere. So when the trolley witch stopped at their compartment, Ron had started to say something, but had been drowned out by Harry hopping up and ordering a small bit of all the things both of them liked, and handing over the money.

   As Harry had sat down with the huge load, and began halfing it so neither would have to reach to get some of whatever they wanted, Ron simply looked in amazement at him.

   "You didn't have to do that Harry!"

   "No, but I wanted to. I saw what was in your sandwiches, and I know you don't like it. So-" he carried on moving things over to Ron's seat, "- I got some pumpkin pasties, because y'know, actual food. But then, chocolate frogs, Bertie Botts, um... droobles, some random lollies... Oh! I got you a liquorice wand."

   "I'll pay you back when I-"

   Harry shook his head, interrupting, "No you won't. It was sweet money. That's why I got it, and I bought sweets. I would share with you anyway, you know that."

   "Thank you." Ron smiled, then slowly his face cracked into a grin, and Harry's snicker sent them both diving into their piles of sweets until they could eat no more.

   It was around this time, a few hours into the journey, that the novelty sort of wore off, and they would much rather have just arrived. They were playing a half hearted game of mini wizards chess that Harry had gotten in a Christmas cracker a few years previous, and nibbling on the sweets they had left. It was also around this time that people in other compartments also seemed to be getting bored and every so often, a few would walk past theirs, looking for new people to sit with, or just to stretch their legs. One such group of people happened to be the Malfoy kid from Madam Malkin's, flanked by two huge goons that looked like they didn't have a brain cell between them. Harry was about to roll his eyes at the smug expression plastered across Malfoy's face, but stopped when his expression softened into one of shock, and what might have been a grin if Harry had been alone.

   "Potter." he half exclaimed, "Harry Potter."

   "That's me." Harry deadpanned, not sure where Malfoy was going with this.

   "It's nice to see you again. You rushed off so quickly before."

   "Yeah..." he blushed, suddenly feeling that might not have been his best idea considering he'd be at school with this boy for seven years, "Sorry about that. Habit I suppose. If I stick around, people ask me questions. I uh- I never got your name. Your first name."

   "Draco." the boy puffed out his chest proudly, then offered his hand to Harry.

   Ron spoke up before Harry could decide whether to take it or not.

   "You're a Malfoy aren't you?" He had a sour expression, and folded arms.

   "Yes." Malfoy replied, sounding curt, like he might throw an insult, but apparently second guessed, instead turning back to Harry.

   It was in that moment, that Harry decided that it wasn't fair for Draco to immediately be pegged as despicable just because of his last name, just like it wasn't fair to peg a baby as a saviour just because he somehow defeated a Dark Lord. It wasn't fair that either were judged before they were even know, and Harry suddenly felt very guilty for doing that very thing in Madam Malkin's. With part determination, and part impulsion, Harry reached for Draco's hand just as he made to pull it away, and gave it a firm shake.

   "Nice to formally meet you."

   Draco didn't hide his smile this time, and obliged with the handshake.

   "Was there any particular reason why you came to this compartment?" Harry asked, trying not to sound mean about it.

   The worst it seemed to do was embarrass him, and his cheeks turned a very pale shade of pink, and he dropped Harry's hand, taking a step back.

   "Not really. Just boredom. Well uh- we'll leave you to it."

   And with a wave of his hand, the goons behind him moved out the way so he could exit, and followed him back down the carriage. Harry didn't believe for a second that Draco had come in for no reason, but he wouldn't have pushed it anyway. What was the point really?

   "You didn't have to shake his hand," Ron grumbled irritably, "you could be cursed now, for all we know."

   Harry shrugged at first, and went to nibble on the tail of a jelly snake. But then it set in what Ron was implying, and the idea of a curse coming from just a handshake was so ridiculous, that Harry burst out laughing. And it did nothing to brighten Ron's mood.

   ---

   The students were met from the train by Rubeus Hagrid, the groundskeeper, who Harry had met rather a few times, and was actually really fond of. The half-giant gave him a joyful wave when he spotted him, and Harry was pretty happy to be following him down to the boats - at least it was someone he knew, right?

   He was herded into a boat with Ron, a girl with sleek back hair who said nothing, and scowled, and a bushy haired girl who jabbered on about facts as the castle came into view and made Harry wonder which textbook she'd swallowed. 'Hogwarts: A History' by the sounds of it. To each their own, Harry supposed, but he personally had been more interested in skimming the Defense Against the Dark Arts books, and changing the description of werewolves in his copy of 'Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them'. Any questions about Hogwarts had been answered during his childhood, so maybe the bushy haired girl was muggle-born. Maybe she'd be the next Lily Evans and pummel them all into the ground with intelligence. Harry didn't ask her name though, or really try to strike any sort of conversation with her. He quite liked his ears where they were thank you, and his eyes had enough to take in with the view of the castle without having to listen to her too. Because the castle had naturally been described to him on plenty of occasions, and he'd seen photos and everything, but nothing could have prepared him for this moment of seeing it for himself for the first time.

   All he had to do, was try not to get lost in it.

   The boat ride was over all too soon, and Harry stuck by Ron, though from the corner of his eye, he could see Draco trying to get closer to him, but doing so in a manner that made Harry think he was trying to do so subtly. It wasn't working. Not that it mattered much, Draco had to stop when they reached the top of a grand staircase anyway, because there at the top stood professor McGonagall and she was not someone to mess with. Harry had heard all the stories from his family to know that much, but as if it wasn't enough, he'd also grown up accustomed to the witch's presence. Harry had already prepared himself for the fact that he was mostly likely going to embarrass himself by calling her Aunt Min as some point during the next seven years, but he figured people would also catch on that it embarrassed her too, and would promptly shut up. That was his hopes anyway. There would be enough attention on his because he was that one kid who defeated Lord Voldemort and has a wicked scar to prove it, as if that was a valid reason to stare at him. He didn't need the fact that he obviously knew the deputy headteacher outside of school on top of that. They'd ask him all sorts, and he had learned the hard way that if you didn't give the answer people wanted, it could sometimes very quickly become nasty.

   After a brief introduction, and explanation of the houses and how they worked, the new students were told to stay put, and the Professor disappeared behind two huge doors that lead to the Great Hall. As soon as the door shut, awkward silence fell, as nobody was quite sure if they were allowed to talk, and most were too in awe to even close their mouths, let alone form words. Draco Malfoy took this opportunity to move closer to Harry, and although he didn't say anything, Harry came to the conclusion that perhaps he had just adopted a Malfoy as a friend, much like how James had adopted a Black as a friend. But it seemed unlikely that Draco would be sorted into Gryffindor with him, so maybe it would more be a case of intermingling the houses. Hogwarts seemed to still have a problem with that. Either way, Draco said nothing, and when the silence began to get to him, the sorting was the only thing he could really think about.

   "So," he began, almost shakily, and no louder than any of the others who had also begun to mutter between themselves, "You still as confident as Slytherin as you were in Madam Malkin's?"

   "Well... what you said actually got me thinking. Slytherin is the most likely, but it's like you said. Nobody  _really_  knows until the sorting."

   "Oh don't worry," Ron cut across snarkily, "I don't think you have to worry too much."

   Draco opened his mouth to reply, but Harry cut in before he could.

   "I think what Ron means to say is that all your family before you will have been in Slytherin for a reason. Cunning, resourcefulness, those sorts of traits. And those are the sorts of traits they likely would have brought you up with. So you're probably right when you say you're likely to be put there."

   "That's not what I meant at all." Ron grumbled.

   Harry was quick to turn and hiss at him, "What's your problem? You don't have to be so mean to him you know."

   Ron's ears went red, and he looked like he was about to blow up with the whole speech about how Malfoys were bad news so surely Draco would be the same, but he never got the chance, because Professor McGonagall chose that perfect moment to come back out, and beckon them all into the Great Hall.

   Great Hall was perhaps, a minor understatement, considering the great bloody size of the thing. Harry could barely make out the faces of anyone of the other side, and the distance seemed only fifty times longer because the group of first years had to walk the length to the Professor's table. There, they stood before a battered looking three-legged wooden stool, on top of which sat an even more battered hat that looked as though it would break should anybody touch it. It was only when the brim of the hat split open into a mouth and the hat began to sing that Harry realised that of course this would be a magical hat, and it would take a lot more than wear and tear for it to be reduced to a pile of threads.

   Panic only really set in when McGonagall explained how the sorting worked and Harry realised that sitting in front of the entire school with an oversized hat on his head doing nothing but waiting for its judgement was actually more terrifying than what the twins had tried to sell to Ron. He waited anxiously for his name, incidentally taking a moment longer than everybody else to applaud when Ron was sorted into Gryffindor with his brothers.

   "See," Harry turned to Draco about to explain that he knew Ron had been brought up with Gryffindor values all his life, and that's the sole reason he was placed there, but the sound of his own name, accompanied by a sudden silence, then mutters stopped him.

   Gulping, and trying not to catch anybody's eye as he did so, he made his way up to the stool, sitting down carefully, and gripping the edge of the seat tightly, holding his breath as the hat was placed on his head and fell over his eyes.

    _Harry Potter. Knew you'd be coming around sooner or later. Though I have to say, you're not as clear cut as I had expected you to be. Now, your parents, Gryffindor through and through, but you... where do I put_ you _?_

"Well," Harry muttered, his mouth suddenly dry, "I'm not my parents, but I am their son. It's your job to sort, not mine."

    _Hmm... You're smart, that's for sure, definitely brave. Desire here to prove yourself, but not entirely because of your name. You've a good mind here... you've certainly got potential. And I think I know just where to put you to unlock that. Yes... better be:_

_SLYTHERIN!_


	4. Alienation

   The silence had been deafening, and even as the glorious feast began, Harry couldn't help but still hear it ringing in his ears. He wasn't mad. He wasn't even upset. If the hat said Slytherin, then he was a Slytherin, that was simply how it sat in his mind, but he just couldn't shake the weird feeling. Because he had grown up surrounded by scarlet and gold, and convinced that he would be as such throughout his whole life, and now he had been thrust into a world of green and silver and it just felt strange. Then there was the case of Ron, who had been practically glaring at him whenever Harry caught his eye from across the hall, and that didn't really make him feel all so good. Draco had tried to talk to him a couple of times, and he hadn't been rude, but Draco had eventually realised Harry wasn't up for talking, and turned to speak with the black haired girl that Harry had been in the boat with, whose name he learnt was Pansy Parkinson, and she already knew Draco. He had barely nibbled the food, despite feeling actually rather hungry, which ended with him having to fill up quickly before desert, causing him to feel too sick to even consider desert. And when the time came to go to their common rooms, another jolt lurched in Harry's stomach, and he willed himself not to throw up.

   Harry picked at the skin around his nails the whole way down to the dungeons where the Slytherin common room was located. It was a bad habit that he had mostly gotten over when he was younger, but unfortunately came back when he was more nervous or stressed than what was normal. And he was both right now. The halls in the dungeons also weren't the most promising for the common room. They were cold, and dark, the lanterns doing seemingly nothing. Some of the bricks were wet, and Harry realised they must have been under the huge lake in the school grounds that they had sailed across and suddenly felt claustrophobic. At this point he pretty much expected the common room to be as dark, damp, and dreary as the rest of the dungeons and he wondered how anybody could feel anything other than unwelcome. Thankfully, although it didn't make him feel much better about everything, he was pleasantly surprised by the common room. Despite the colour combination that didn't quite sit right with him, the room was strangely beautiful. He might even have gone so far as to call it cosy. Bright green fires blazed in the fire places, licking the black marble looking bricks that made them. Dotted around were tables and chairs, and Harry could already imagine how sick the sight of them would make him after a few all nighters of studying at them. But the sofas and arm chairs looked comfortable enough that Harry almost wanted to head right over to them. Instead, however, he followed the rest of his house mates up to their dorms, and waited for his dorm mates to take their beds before following suit. Truth was, Harry felt completely out of his depth here, and wasn't quite sure how to deal with that. He felt only slightly better when Draco offered him a reassuring smile, because with it came guilt. He hadn't really been great company at dinner, had he?

   "Sorry," he muttered, which was met with a confused look, "At dinner. I wasn't-"

   "That's okay." the blonde said it as though he was doing Harry a great service by reassuring him, "No doubt it was a shock. You'll settle in in no time, I'm sure of it."

   Harry practically beamed, and gave a sincere thanks. After all, apparently Ron wanted nothing to do with him anymore, and if Draco Malfoy wanted him as a friend then he certainly wasn't going to complain.

   "So then," one of the other boys in the dorm suddenly spoke up, and Harry realised with a jolt that maybe not everybody would be as strangely pleasant as Draco, "The great Harry Potter, the boy-who-lived, a Slytherin."

   Draco glanced sideways at Harry, no doubt looking for a reaction. He didn't have one.

   "Come off it Nott." Draco rolled his eyes.

   Theodore Nott - Harry remembered that name from the sorting, and now had the face to put to it. Not the most pleasant of faces, true, but a face nonetheless. That could only mean that the other guy in the dorm, who occupied the bed next to Harry, must have been Blaise Zabini - he remembered that name from the sorting too.

   "I'm just saying," Nott continued, "Like weren't your parents Gryffindor?"

   "Well, yeah... but-"

   He'd been about to mention how Sirius' whole family had been Slytherin but he'd been Gryffindor, but given the example was the opposite way round, he didn't think Nott would care all that much.

   It was just easier to let it go.

   "I'm in Slytherin. That's all there is to it."

   Nott seemed to think about that for a minute, before shrugging and resigning back to his bed. Harry caught Draco giving him an impressed sort of look, and he smiled back but didn't pretend to understand the meaning of the look. Maybe he would've struck up another conversation but by now, exhaustion - physical and emotional - was seeping between his bones and he still needed to write to his family. James had insisted he write immediately to tell him how instantly amazing it felt to be a lion, and Harry hated to think of the shock it would be that would never know. And somehow he didn't think James would be quite so interested to learn how it felt to be a snake.

   His mother would. Lily, too, would be shocked, but she would make sure he was okay, and drill it into his head that she loved him no matter what, and his house as school was not going to change a thing. Remus would too, and for all his joking, Sirius would likely be the most supportive because this was of course the exact mirror image of the situation he'd been in, minus the overly traditional family. He couldn't say he was exactly eager for the reply but the longer he put it off, the more nervous the whole thing would make him. By the time he had finished the letter, and send it off thanks to Hedwig's apparent psychic abilities telling her when she was needed, everybody else was asleep. Or so he thought.

   "Hey, Potter." Draco hissed just as Harry had closed his eyes.

   "Yeah?"

   "You'll like it in Slytherin, I'm sure. We're not as bad as everyone seems to think."

   And as he laid there in the dark, Harry smiled, because maybe - just maybe - Draco would be proven to be right.

   ---

   By breakfast the next morning, Harry was aware of two things. Number one was something he probably should've learnt the previous night but had managed to slip his notice, and that was that Severus Snape was the head of Slytherin house. Harry had only really met the man once or twice, because his extended family had history with him, and Harry had always thought Snape didn't exactly like him too much, and he had no doubt that was because of his father. He had known somewhere in the back of his head, that Snape worked at the school but it had slipped his mind and had only resurfaced when he heard some of the older year students talking about him. He figured all he could really do was hope Snape wasn't too harsh, and while he didn't agree with the favouritism that older students said he had for Slytherin, Harry also didn't fancy being the only one in his house to be treated like something on the bottom of his shoe.

   Number two was proof that his family were the absolute best he could ever hope for. Well... most of them anyway. Among the owls that delivered post that morning was Hedwig, carrying a rather thick letter. He fed Hedwig some toast as he opened it, and upon seeing that the envelope contained three separate letters, Harry initially assumed one would be written by both his parents. He was wrong. There was one from Lily, one from Remus, and one from Sirius. James had sent nothing and that in itself put him on edge, which only worsened as he read the letters. As suspected, Lily's consisted of multiple ways of saying the same thing: she loved him and his house didn't mean jack to her, because he was her son, and if he was in Slytherin then goddamnit he was going to be the best Slytherin there was. She explained that James was having a hard time processing it, because he had gotten himself a little too fixated on the idea of Harry being in the same house as him, but he'd get over it eventually and Harry needn't worry about it. Remus' letter followed a similar route. Telling him he was accepted as a person not what house he happened to belong to, and he apologised for all the jokes he had made with the others about Slytherin and that they were purely from their experiences with the Slytherins in their year, but that Harry was sure to make some excellent friends. After all, Slytherin also prided their loyalty to certain people they deemed worthy of it. He also assured Harry that James was just being an absolute prat, and if he didn't come round, Remus would personally slap him because how dare he do something that could make Harry feel like shit, and Harry didn't question it because Moony had always had his sneaky ways to know how Harry was feeling and what sort of things affected his mood.

   But it was Sirius' letter that he had been absolutely wrong about. He had expected jokes, and gentle teasing sent his way, but the whole thing was just sombre and serious, and Harry couldn't remember the last time he'd seen him so serious. He appreciated it though. Merlin, how he appreciated it. It almost made him cry, just the understanding that seeped from the ink on the parchment because he felt so alienated, like he had disappointed not only his family, but the whole of the wizarding world that saw him as this great hero and now he was in the same house as the wizard who had forced him into that position, and it hurt that his father hadn't been one of the first to stand by his side, proud anyway, and reassure him that his house meant nothing in the way of his personality, and the type of person he would grow to be. Lily, Remus and Sirius had never even left, but while he couldn't express how grateful he was, it just wasn't the same as having all four. He hoped they were all right. About James coming round, because some bitter voice in the back of Harry's head muttered what sort of father would he be to make an alien of his son just for some stupid house, in some stupid school, that meant nothing in the great scheme of things.

   The letters went into his robe pocket, and they stayed there the whole day. And through all the awe, and the sheer unknown of the school and all the lessons he attended during that hectic first day, not once could he fully take his mind off the letters. His hand remained in his pocket holding them when walking between lessons, and at mealtimes, and Harry was just glad that Draco, and Pansy (who knew Draco better than he had initially thought, and had consequentially meant Pansy had rather accidentally become his second friend) didn't say anything to him about them. He figured they must have noticed because it wasn't as though it was some huge secret but whatever the reason for their ignorance, he was grateful.

   It was dinner before he actually took them out of his pocket though, and even then it was actually only Sirius' that he pulled out, and he read the words again, and again, revelling in the understanding it portrayed.

_Dear Prongslet,_

_First of all, ignore your dad. Ignore his stupid strop, and his absolutely unacceptable way of dealing with this. He's acting pathetic, and take my word for it, he will be hearing about that non-stop from me._

_There is absolutely nothing wrong with you being in Slytherin. Do you hear me? Nothing. You are just as loved and appreciated as before. You are still respected. You are still the exact same person, and you have the exact same views, and morals, and opinions, and you are not going to be treated any different for something so trivial. I refuse to let you be treated how I was. Not my nephew. You have my full permission to hex anybody that gives you shit, because you are not evil, your house is not evil. I make some cruel jokes, and I am so sorry if they're now affecting you. The truth is, it just happened that the people I didn't like in school were Slytherins, and my family were Slytherins and it tainted my views, but it's not an excuse._

_You are who you are, and you're an amazing, brilliant boy, and I will say it over and over, watch me, that the colour of your tie, the table you sit at, the people you're around don't make the blindest bit of difference to how much I love you. To how much we_ all _love you. Your dad is being a complete ass right now, but he thinks the world of you. We all do._

_Don't you think for one second that this is something bad, okay? I know you, Harry Potter. I know you, and if you let yourself think for one second that this is a disappointment to us, you're wrong, and I'm going to restrict motorbike rides until you get it._

_Now you get yourself out there, and be the absolute best punk rock snake there is, understand?_

_All my love,_

_Your favourite Godfather ~_


	5. How To: Magic

   Harry was extremely relieved to find that everybody was pretty much at the same level when it came to lessons. Even those, like him, with a magical upbringing didn't surpass those who were muggleborn. In fact, there was one muggleborn - the bushy haired girl who'd shared the boat with him and Ron - who despite having no idea magic existed until her letter arrived, seemed to have such a grip on it, that she put everyone else to shame. Draco and Pansy were both rather ruffled about this, often joking about how she was supposed to read the textbooks, not eat them, but Harry cared very little for joining them, despite that he had thought the exact same thing before. The difference, however, was he hadn't said it aloud. Perhaps she really would be the next Lily Evans, and if that was the case, there was no way he'd stoop to ridiculing her.

   Unfortunately though, Harry's first week at Hogwarts was not the week he was able to stop the others doing so, as he ended up having rather enough on his mind to think about without seeing how quickly he could get his new friends to dislike him.

   He was filled with a sense of dread the moment he entered his first Transfiguration, as he realised that Professor McGonagall was as good as family, but much like the rest of his family had expected him to be in Gryffindor, and now? Where did he even stand at this point? He wasn't in her house like he had always expected to be, so what did that mean for how close they were? For how they'd known each other his whole life? Suddenly he felt infinitely more determined not to slip up with what he called her in school, because somehow it meant so much more now.

   He spent the whole lesson doing his best to keep his head down. Take down his notes, and attempt the task at hand quietly and avoid eye contact. Pansy nudged him and asked him why he was suddenly so quiet, when he'd been perfectly happy laughing and joking that morning in excitement for the day's lessons. All he could muster was a weak 'I'm fine' followed by a promise to tell her later when she gave him an unconvinced look. She dropped it, thankfully, and Harry went back to making what was supposed to be a needle from a match, but was actually just a silvery coloured match with an eye through the head. He sighed defeatedly each time, but kept hope because at least he wasn't the only one. In fact, the only person who fully succeeded was the bushy haired girl, who Harry finally learned was called Hermione something-or-other. Draco came pretty close though. In fact, his match completely resembled a needle, but was incredibly warm to the touch and spontaneously lit on fire at one end. Harry hadn't been able to hold back his laughter when it singed the edge of Draco's robe sleeve.

   However, his dread worsened and wiped any smile clean off his face once the lesson ended and Professor McGonagall called him over. It was only made worse by the fact that she had gone to call him 'Harry' but had caught herself last minute and referred to him as 'Mr. Potter' instead. He was embarrassed to admit that he panicked, leading to him urging Draco and Pansy to wait outside for him, which they did but not without a look of confusion.

   "Professor?" he greeted, sounding about as nervous as he felt.

   "What, no 'Aunt Min'?" she joked gently, but Harry could tell she was maybe just slightly saddened by it.

   "Well I-"

   "You thought you'd forfeited rights to call me as such?"

   Harry gave her a look, partially conveying confusion, partially guilt because of course she hit the nail on the head.

   "You are so like your father, did you know that? Your silly little insecurities. You should have seen him around your mother in the last years of his school career. He-"

   "Sorry-" he interrupted suddenly, "I just... I'm not sure my dad would really appreciate admitting that I'm anything like him at the minute."

   He looked down and scuffed the toe of his shoes on the floor, pretending not to hear McGonagall's small sigh, and almost kicking himself when he jumped at her hand on his shoulder.

   "Your mother wrote to me too Harry. Your father is not taking this well, I admit, he convinced himself you would be in my house, and it's just going to take a little while for him to adjust to the reality of it. But that doesn't mean he loves you any less. You are like him, and what house you're in will not change that I'm afraid. Listen," Harry looked up at this point, "this has obviously bothered you, a lot, so I'm not about to tell you to just stop, but I'm here if you need to talk to me. Eleven years you've known me, one single night where a hat chose what table to sat at is not going to change the fact that you're practically family. Do you understand?"

   Harry hesitated ever so slightly, but nodded, and when McGonagall pulled him in for a hug, it was instinct to hug back, and he thought maybe he was overreacting. He shouldn't have had such little faith in her really.

   "Now." she pulled away, but gave a fond smile, "I've kept you long enough, you should head to your next lesson.

   Practically beaming, Harry darted from the room, and he, Draco and Pansy pretty much had to sprint to get to their next lesson on time. And it was a good job they made it, because Professor Snape was not somebody to mess with. Especially if your name was Harry Potter and you were the son of James Potter. Harry had met him a few times, but had always gotten the inkling that he wasn't really liked by the man, and it had taken for him to get a bit older before he realised that it wasn't actually anything he'd done, unless you thought him being born was his fault. He was aware of the fact that Snape and the Marauders had pretty much hated each other, and once upon a time he and Lily had been friends, but something had happened to stop that. It was actually their friendship that was the reason Harry had met him those couple of times, because over the years, Lily and Snape had tried rekindling their friendship, but the same connection they'd had as little kids just didn't have the same significance in adulthood.

   Lily wasn't surrounded by people who didn't understand her, and Snape was no longer the person he'd been when they'd been friends anyway. Their attempts just hadn't been as successful as they had hoped, and Harry couldn't help the awful feeling that told him maybe he'd be the one dealing with that for the next seven years. He could only hope that Snape's rumoured favouritism of Slytherin - while he didn't agree with favouritism - would reach to him just enough that he wouldn't be hated.

   So maybe it was a better job than he thought that they weren't late. Snape still didn't seem too happy but realistically there wasn't much he could say, especially considering he wasn't alone. Harry just made the decision to play it safe during the lesson. It seemed too good to be true that Snape didn't say a thing during the lesson, and indeed it was when he was once again called back after the lesson.

   "Do you want us to stay?" Draco asked, the tone of his voice suggesting he knew what was coming, and that it wasn't pleasant.

   It didn't really set Harry's mind at ease, but he forced a smile.

   "No, that's okay. What's the worst he can do, really? Besides, he was friends with my mum in school."

   But even as he said it, he knew that wouldn't help him. In fact, one look at Snape once Draco and Pansy had left, and he was fairly certain nothing would help him.

   "Yes, Professor?"

   "Mr. Potter," the potions master drawled, and Harry didn't appreciate how his name was said, "I just wished to extend my... congratulations to you for being placed in my house. I trust you will make Slytherin proud."

   "Thank you sir," Harry tried not to sound scared, "I'll certainly do my best."

   "I must warn you though. You will not be able to achieve that playing into what you probably think of as celebrity status. Arrogance will get you nowhere."

   Immediately, Harry felt anger bubbling beneath the surface of his skin, because he knew exactly what this was about. Or rather, who this was about, because he had heard the Marauder's constant mocking of Severus Snape and how his favourite jibe was to insult James Potter's arrogance. Snape barely even knew him, and Harry felt almost disappointed that he was being so compared to his father, especially with how he was acting right now. And usually, Harry was the type of boy to be careful of when and how he spoke his mind. If it would get him in trouble, he most likely would keep his mouth clamped shut. But this was a strange situation. He didn't care what Snape's reasons were; he didn't care what vendettas Snape had against his family excluding Lily, and he wasn't about to allow bullying from a Professor - somebody who should be professional and know better - just because it made said bully feel better. He was starting to see why James, Sirius and Remus had had so many issues with this guy.

   "I'm sorry, who's arrogant? I've been here a single night, and I don't think I've mentioned who I am once. People know me, what do you expect? I was a turning point in the war, and I stopped the reign of You-Know-Who's people - which if I'm not mistaken,  _you_  followed. But I was a  _baby._  I don't remember it, and it certainly wasn't the conscious choice of a one year old to save the whole goddamn wizarding world. I don't intend to use my fame, or whatever you want to call it to achieve anything, even though that's exactly what Slytherin's do, isn't it? 'Those cunning folk use any means, to achieve their ends' so you're already telling me I'm not allowed to act on my houses traits. But the other trait is ambition, in case you forgot, so I'm actually very eager to prove myself worthy of this house, through means other than something I did as a child." Harry paused for a moment, to see if Snape was as quick on the uptake as he was, but he just got a mildly bewildered expression, "You can have any issues with my father you want, but don't compare me to him when you don't even know me. Good day."

   And with that, Harry stalked towards the door. He expected to be called back, and he expected a tone worse than the first, but all he heard, as he left the room, was a furious growl, followed by a quiet 'two points to Slytherin'.

   And that just made Harry even angrier.

   ---

   "What happened?" Pansy asked, as soon as Harry met back up with them.

   "I mouthed off."

   Draco hissed under his breath, rolling his eyes, "Nice going."

   "No, he gave me two points for it. That's not fair."

   "If you expected Slytherin to be fair, you really have got another thing coming." Draco sniffed.

   "Draco's right Harry," Pansy gripped Harry's robe sleeve, "Slytherin are not known for being fair. Snape was probably furious at you, but you're in his house, and you talked back to him, which obviously shows some nerve. What are you going to do about it, realistically? Ask him to take them back?"

   "Close. Not him. Someone else."

   "Whoa, you're not serious."

   "No, I'm Harry." Harry laughed under his breath, forgetting that Draco and Pansy didn't get the joke, "Look, it's not fair, and maybe Slytherin isn't, but I am, and I'm not about to let myself be awarded two points for something that another house would be reducted fifty for."

   The two tried to talk sense into Harry as they trailed after him all around the castle, but for the most part he just ignored them. He was dead set on this, and when he finally got to McGonagall's classroom, Draco and Pansy had pretty much given up. Knocking, and entering the room, Harry was grateful that she was alone.

   "Ah, Mr. Potter-"

   "Aunt Min, can you take two points off Slytherin please?"

   McGonagall looked taken back, and Harry could practically feel the confused looks of his house mates at the nickname.

   "And why exactly would you want me to do that?"

   "Because Professor Snape was being a bully, so I talked back, but he just gave me two points for it, even though he was angry. And that's not fair. I don't care if that's what he's known for, I don't want them."

   "What exactly was he saying?"

   "How arrogance would get me nowhere, and using my fame would be pointless and all these other things. He was comparing me directly to Dad, when he doesn't even know me. So I said that, and said that actually using my fame would be the Slytherin thing to do, but ambition is another and I want to actually prove myself. I said he can think whatever he liked about dad, but I'm not him."

   McGonagall raised an eyebrow, "Anything else?"

   Harry scuffed the toe of his shoe against the floor and shrugged, but proceeded to blurt out, "I also asked how I was actually expected to remember anything I did as a baby, even if it was defeated a Dark Lord and his followers... I also reminded him he was one of those followers."

   McGonagall paled, and sighed, but didn't for a second lose her composure. She was wearing the sort of look that Harry had never been able to decipher. Was it good? Bad? How was he supposed to feel, if he had no idea what was coming? He found the best way to deal with these looks was to set your own expression to blank, and take what was given.

   "You shouldn't have said those things to a Professor, Harry, even if he deserved it." she sighed again softly, "Two points too Slytherin."

   "What!" Harry exclaimed indignantly.

   "You came forward, determined for fairness, and that in itself deserves reward. I have never in my career seen or heard of a student asking to rectify unfair given points."

   "Happy to be the first." Harry grumbled under his breath sarcastically.

   "Now, don't be like that. Off you go now, that's my take on it."

   The three trailed out of the class room, Draco and Pansy very happily all smug, while Harry just huffed. Until about half way down the corridor, when Draco was very much sick of Harry's moping, he nudged the other boy in the side and snickered.

   "So then- Aunt Min, huh?"

 


	6. The Mind of a Snake

   Word must have gotten around somehow about Harry mouthing off at Snape. Personally, Harry thought it was Pansy, but either way, those who had been upset with with Harry's house were now also angered by the obvious lack of punishment for his disrespect. Namely: Ronald Weasley. If Ron was giving Harry dirty looks before, it was nothing to the death glares he was getting now. At first it bothered him, but then Draco and Pansy noticed it too, and took it upon themselves to reassure him that it wasn't anything Harry could be expected to fix. Ron's problems were his own. This support succeeded in making Harry carefree in all matters seething with negativity, which angered the redhead more. At some po11int he must've had enough. 

   Harry, Pansy and Draco all agreed they could happily have gone without any interaction from Ron at all that evening as they'd had rather a pleasant dinner that may or may not have involved Pansy laughing so hard that pumpkin juice spurted out of her nose. And if that hadn't been funny enough, it had landed all over Draco. They had still been giggling (or complaining in Draco's case) as they left the Great Hall.

   But who should they run into to stop such laughter but Ronald Weasley.

   Behind him stood Hermione Granger, looking quite fed up with the whole business, and a blonde boy that Harry recognised, but couldn't name. He didn't look too happy to be there either.

   "So." The redhead folded his arms, scowling.

   "What do you want?" Harry sighed.

   It hurt him, deep within his chest, that this was his childhood friend, but now only a scowling glaring inconvenience that gave Harry a sense of dread whenever he showed up. Why had his house had such an effect on the boy?

   "Nothing much. But I don't know, don't you think it's unfair? Bad enough you're put in Slytherin, but being awarded points for doing whatever you did? It's not fair!"

   Harry snapped, "Well life isn't fair! And it sounds like you don't even know what I did so give me a break. You're acting like I actually asked for Slytherin and frankly you're being pathetic about it."

   "I'm pathetic? You've just slithered right into the ranks of some of the worst families."

   "And you think you're any better?"

   If Harry was anything, he had notably been described as fiercely loyal by his family members. Maybe it should have been some stupid sign that he wasn't as wholly Lion as he'd been made out to be, but he didn't care if he'd known Draco and Pansy two days or two years, he trusted them. They were nothing like the stereotypes of their families. Sure, Draco was a bit of a brat, and Pansy was sly and notorious for spreading rumours, but they were good people as far as Harry was concerned. He didn't care what history he had with Ron, he wasn't going to stand by and let him so mercilessly insult his new friends.

   "Yes-"

   "Well I disagree."

   "The Malfoys and Parkinsons sided with You-Know-Who; they're all pure evil."

   "First of all, do your research. The Parkinsons were not noted as Death Eaters, so can't technically be held to taking sides. And the Malfoys may have sided with him then, but I don't see them looking for their Dark Lord now, do you? And secondly, you are being infinitely more hostile than they are."

   "Well I disagree with that."

   "A duel then." Harry spat.

   Ron faltered at that slightly, like he was confused about why Harry would suggest something so different to his nature. Being so young and such an important turning point in the war, Ron had always thought Harry to be the least violent person he'd ever be likely to meet. But either way, Harry noticed the confusion.

   "Draco's my second," he continued, "Who's yours?"

   "H-hey, wait." Draco spluttered, though more furious he would have to actually interact with Ron.

   "Neville." Ron replied snarkily, as the blonde boy shifted nervously behind him.

   "You're both stupid." Hermione spoke up.

   Ron huffed and walked away, and Harry raised an eyebrow at Hermione.

   "I can guarantee the only stupid one is him." He shifted his bag onto his shoulder more comfortably, "I don't see why you're friends with him."

   "I'm not!" Hermione cried indignantly, "I'm friends with Neville."

   Harry hummed, half disbelievingly, and half contemplatively. Nothing else needed to be said however, Hermione turned and stalked off too, Neville following meekly behind. Harry stood and watched them until they had turned a corner, then swiftly made off in the opposite direction. Draco and Pansy followed behind and caught up to him.

   "The trophy room is quite a ways away." Pansy noted, "You'd have to leave the common room maybe half eleven."

   "And we'll have to factor in sneaking around and hiding if anybody comes by."

   Harry scoffed, "Don't be stupid."

   "Hey!" Pansy elbowed him in the side, "we're trying to help."

   "Yeah well. You don't need to. You've both been bad influences on me and haven't even noticed."

   "What do you mean?" the blonde asked, sounding quite offended.

   Harry snickered, "We're not going to the trophy room tonight. We're not going anywhere tonight."

   "What-" Pansy began before it clicked.

   "We're not showing up."

   ---

   Quarter to midnight found the three of them draped leisurely across one of the sofas. Draco was laid with his legs hooked over the arm rest, with Pansy sat next to where his head reached. Then Harry was laid, his legs bent and head rested in Pansy's lap.

   "You think they've left their common room yet?" Draco asked tiredly.

   "They should have done if they intended to get there on time."

   "Ron's never had the best time keeping skills."

   There was a long pause but though he had his eyes closed, Harry sensed they might have glanced to one another, and could feel the brewing question.

   "How do you know him anyway?" Pansy's voice was softer this time, perhaps aware she was on thin ice bringing this up when Harry was clearly still dealing with it.

   Frankly though, Harry couldn't care less. The sadness of the situation had passed and been replaced with anger. If Ron was going to be so quick to turn on him, then maybe he wasn't a worthy friend anyway.

   "Just childhood friends. My mum and his are friends so it just came naturally. To be honest with you, I always got on better with his brothers and sister."

   "There's enough to choose from." Draco snickered, and didn't notice Harry's sudden glare as his own expression turned to one of confusion, "I didn't know he had a sister though."

   Harry's heart skipped a beat. Of course families like the Malfoys probably had extensive records of the bigger wizarding families. He knew his own father had some somewhere, but never bothered himself with them, so they were more than likely out of date.

   "She's coming to Hogwarts next year."

   Draco started muttering something under his breath, and Harry froze.

   "William, Charles, Percy, Fred, George, Ronald, Ignatius." He spoke up, "Isn't Ignatius a boy's name?"

   It was Iggy, not Ignatius, Harry thought bitterly, followed quickly in his head by, but even then it wasn't really.

   "It's Ginevra." He stated calmly, trying not to get defensive, "well, Ginny. Everybody calls her Ginny."

   "I've never heard of her."

   "Well it's not your family so why should you have?"

   Harry could tell, even without looking, that Draco was likely pouting now. Pansy rested her hand on Harry's shoulder gently and Harry sighed.

   "I'm sorry. But you're so sure you know these things and won't admit when actually you don't. We just established I know them all, when all you know is whatever your dad told you. There's a difference. I'm telling you, with confidence, that Ron has a sister. Just accept that."

   "Alright, I get it."

   "You just don't need to be so bratty about things."

   "And here you were a few hours ago saying we weren't stereotypical." Pansy pointed out, rather slyly Harry thought.

   And that opened an entirely new can of worms didn't it?

   "Draco being bratty isn't stereotypical. People think that's how he'll act but it's not a stereotype. I didn't say anything untrue before. You weren't known deatheaters, and he isn't going on about finding some dark wizard that everybody else would rather stay gone."

   "You're the only one who's going to believe that though."

   "Nah." Harry scrunched his nose and shook his head, with a sort of finality, "Some truths need a little bit of proving but I'm not the only one."

   "How do you know?" Draco mumbled, almost miserably.

   Harry shrugged, then, realising Draco definitely couldn't see him, and Pansy might not be looking, sighed, "Maybe just optimism."

   Pansy scoffed, "And how far do you think optimism will take you?"

   "Far enough, if-"

   "If what?"

   "Well, I don't... it probably won't sound so good aloud as in my head."

   Draco and Pansy were quiet, no doubt expecting Harry to carry on.

   "Okay think about it like this. Ron has been bitter about me being in Slytherin. Why?"

   "Because he thinks all Slytherins are evil."

   "Exactly. He thinks that. But he doesn't know it because it's not true. People are stuck in these mindsets that people are either good or evil. Pads told me that's not true."

   "Pads?"

   "My godfather. He told me once, that there's good and evil in everybody, but it's the part we choose to act on that counts. You two have been nothing but kind to me, so that's all I can see you as."

   "That... that actually makes sense." Pansy hummed.

   "You sound like an adult." Draco huffed.

   Harry couldn't help but laugh, but wasn't surprised. After all, his mother was Lily Potter, who from eleven years old had to deal with a certain group of children, who never actually managed to grow up. And Harry had certainly taken after her as well as his father, mostly in situations such as this when a wise word was perhaps what was needed. But he didn't say a word of this to the others because it felt like too much to explain.

   "Well either way, I think you have a point, and if you have any bright ideas so we can stop getting booed when we're sorted into Slytherin, then I'll be all ears." There was something about how Pansy said it that made her sound bratty, but Harry believed her anyway.

   He figured anybody would want to avoid being booed for something that wasn't even the end of the world.

   ---

   Harry was tired the next day, and ached, and could barely remember even finding his way into his bed the previous night. But in bed he was, with his dorm mates in the surrounding beds. And all he could think was how he really did not want to get up.

   However he found his mood greatly improved when he saw Ron walk into the Great Hall for breakfast with a sour expression filled with anger. And he shot every last bit of it Harry's way. He knew he should have felt a little sorry about it all, but really the boy asked for it.

   "Guess we know he got caught then, eh?" Pansy snickered, and Harry gave her an overdramatic bow.

   "Well there'll be more where that came from."

   "Let's hope so." Draco added, "what sort of friends would we be if we didn't show you the fun of deceit?"

   "Well that would just depend who you ask. Personally I think I'd have to make new friends."

   There was a pause, but the silence of it was comforting to the trio. Harry could hardly believe he'd made friends he was so comfortable with so soon, and only hoped it wasn't too good to be true and that he could keep them.

   It wasn't long after breakfast however, that Harry was reminded that he had other friends too. Sure, Ron had been a let down, but as he knew from himself, Ron wasn't his family, just one of them. As they left the Great Hall after a usually filling breakfast, they were met by two red heads, taller than their brother and identical in appearances. To most people anyway. Harry often wondered if he was the only one capable of knowing the difference between Fred and George Weasley.

   "Hullo...?" Harry uttered nervously, feeling slightly on edge at the grins the twins wore.

   "Oh don't sound so nervous."

   "We only wanted to talk."

   Harry sighed, and slumped his shoulders lightly, "I'm sorry but if this has anything at all to do with Ron or my house, I'm not interested."

   "Actually," George ventured, his grin now fading, "we think you will be."

   "Yeah," Fred continued, "we think the way Ron is being about this whole thing is awful."

   "You... do?"

   "Yeah! We've known you your entire life, and we know you're not the Slytherin type." Fred paused and looked guiltily at Draco and Pansy who had folded their arms, "the stereotype I mean."

   "Point is you mean a great deal to us. Mum too, and Ginny and the rest. Being a Slytherin won't change that and we wouldn't have said anything, but with the way Ron's acting, we thought you might need to hear it."

   Harry smiled softly. He honestly had needed to hear that, especially from the twins now he thought about it, who were being more serious than Harry thought he'd ever seen them, and it meant a lot.

   "Thank you. Honestly. You know the Weasleys are practically family to me, and that won't change because of... well..."

   "Because of Ronald being a brat." The two of them grinned widely.

   Harry couldn't help but laugh, and he swore he heard Draco and Pansy snicker too.

   "Exactly."


End file.
